client growth

We had to find new clients, serve clients,
develop our website, answer incoming phone calls,
manage the books, pay receivables, negotiate
partnerships, and so on and so on.

Like other successful entrepreneurs, as we grew
our company, we knew we had to hire great people.
There is no way that Jay and I could have
possibly managed everything the company had to
accomplish.

In fact, according to management guru Peter
Drucker, an entrepreneur must narrow their role
as they grow their organizations. The
entrepreneur must focus on the areas that provide
the most value to the organization, and delegate
the rest.

Yes, your ability to determine what to delegate
and to delegate to the right people is the only
way to grow a successful company. As author Jim
Collins states, "the most important decisions
that business people make are not 'what'
decisions, but 'who' decisions." That is,
determining "who" should do the work is
absolutely essential to the work getting done
right, and the company being successful.

As a result, it's no coincidence that new
ventures succeed, or fail, based on the quality
of people they hire. It's no coincidence that
Apple was so successful with a key early employee
like Guy Kawasaki. Or that PayPal was so
successful with Steve Chen, Chad Hurley and Jawed
Karim as key early employees? (Steve, Chad and
Jawed would later found YouTube.)

Simply put, your ability to hire the right people
is absolutely critical to your success as an
entrepreneur.

In order to teach you how to hire like an expert,
I interviewed Dr. Geoff Smart. Dr. Smart is the
Chairman & CEO of ghSMART, which helps companies
and investors identify the right people to hire
to ensure that they can achieve success. He is
also the co-author of the current New York Times
Bestseller "Who: The A Method for Hiring."

Interestingly, part of his research in conducting
his book was interviewing more than 20
billionaires and 60 CEOs, investors, and other
thought leaders, so Dr. Smart was able to learn
real-world methodologies that allow entrepreneurs
like you to hire with precision.

During our interview, Dr. Smart gave tons of
actionable information. Some of the highlights
included:

* Tap referrals when seeking new employees: 77%
of successful hires come through referrals. That
is, by asking your employees and
advisors/friends/colleagues who they know that
could be "rock stars" in the open position, you
can find great talent.

* Don't just create a job description. Rather
than simply creating a job description for your
open position, create a "scorecard." Among other
things, this scorecard should focus on the
desired outcome of the employee. For example,
rather than saying that the employee will be
responsible for calling on prospects in Indiana,
the scorecard must include numeric sales and
prospecting goals (e.g., must make 10 to 15 sales
calls/day and close $250,000 worth of sales each
quarter). Importantly, entrepreneurs should also
use the scorecard to judge employee performance
after hiring them.

* Probe in your interviews. Most interviews don't
unmask the real information and insight you need
to make quality hiring decisions. For example, if
a salesperson said they generated $2 million in
sales in their last job, it might seem very
impressive. But, only by asking the three "P"
questions can you really tell if it was. These
questions include how the $2 million compared to
the Previous year's sales in that territory, how
the $2 million compared to the Planned amount of
sales, and how the $2 million compared to sales
by the individual's Peers.

Dr. Smart made tons of great additional points
that entrepreneurs can use immediately to start
building stronger teams and achieve more success.
In fact, we are in the process of hiring more
customer support staff for entreprenuers University,
and will be employing his techniques immediately.
To Your Success!
--
Venture Capital Intl., Thomas Duffy, CEO
Cell: 203.775.9999
Fax: 203.648.4942

5 steps

Without further hesitation, here are 5 signs your business plan will come up short with investors:

Sign #1: You’re Selling What?
You know what you sell. But has your business plan clearly and concisely described those products and services? Too many business plan writers make the incorrect assumption that the reader is as familiar with their business as they are. Unfortunately, this assumption leads to a quick and final “no” from lenders and investors.

Instead, define and describe your product for someone who knows nothing about your industry. Be sure to include not only the features of your offering, but also the benefits. Tell the reader what need it fills, why it’s better, faster, or cheaper or how it can improve their life.

Sign #2: “I Sell To Everyone!”
Do you? More than likely, you sell to a very specific group with the need and desire to purchase your product or service. Understanding your target market can be the difference between success and failure. It allows you to outline the benefits important to your clients, enables you to focus your marketing efforts to reach the right audience, and forces you to determine the most cost effective channel to get your product in the hands of paying customers.

Define your customer in as much detail as possible, including demographic traits as well as more subjective items such as lifestyle and personality types.

Sign #3: Your Competitors Know You Exist
A business plan lacking a comprehensive competitive analysis is destined for the trash can of most investors. In order to avoid this fate your business plan should include a thorough analysis of your competition. Experienced capital sources know that competition exists, but they also know that competitive forces can have a very positive effect on a company’s attitude and performance. Remember, Coke has Pepsi, Microsoft has Apple, etc. Be sure your business plan identifies who your competitors are, what they sell, what market share they hold and their strengths and weaknesses.

Sign #4: Even Batman Had Robin
No one ever said running a company was easy, and with the lack of hours in a day (only 24 hours as far as we can tell), a well rounded TEAM of people is often critical to the success of a company. Most capital sources view one-person operations as limited in terms of time, experience and core business skills necessary to launch and grow a serious business. They also expect a team of professionals that are highly competent in each business function (marketing, sales, operations, finance, manufacturing, engineering, etc.). Once you have assembled your team, be sure to provide your business plan reader a thorough description of the background and job responsibility for each, along with a discussion of your board of directors, board of advisors and key consultants.

Sign #5: An Exit Strategy – Without An Exit, Or A Strategy
A business plan is an excellent tool to plan a business or to raise capital. However, when seeking capital don’t forget that an investor’s commitment hinges upon their ability to recoup their initial investment and a healthy profit. The lack of a solid and realistic exit strategy demonstrating how investors will accomplish this goal can immediately turn off many sources of capital.

When deciding upon an exit strategy, be sure to take into account your particular industry, business life-cycle, competitive environment, and management needs. It’s also important to consider your personal and financial goals, and how they relate to the future of your business – without forgetting that an exit strategy must meet the needs of the person who will ultimately write you a check.

Good Luck and Happy Business Planning! For more information on preparing a top notch, investor ready business plan call me

html://www.tduffyllc.com
Venture Capital Intl., Thomas Duffy, CEO
Cell: 203.775.9999
Fax: 203.648.4942